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WABOLABR

About Me

As an infant, JORDAN WANKOFF was found in a fiddle case tucked under a bush. Of course the fiddle itself was gone, and he felt a yearning for this lost instrument from his earliest days. When he finally encountered a violin as a teenager he knew he had found his destiny. His affinity for the banjo remains a mystery, but then isn't that always the way? ************************************************************ *****************ANGELA BOWMAN started singing as a way to be heard above the din of her five brothers and sisters. It also proved a useful means of organizing the troops when it came time to do the dishes; like the coal-miners of West Virginia or sailors of the high seas, the Bowman children sang to keep their spirits up during their long nights at the kitchen sink.******************************************************* ********************** Though raised in the wilds of Iowa and Indiana, ELIZABETH LAMBERTI spent her formative adult years in Italy, where she cultivated a taste for elegant footwear. When she returned to the states she snapped like a rubber band back to her Hillbilly roots, picked up her fiddle and proceeded to set up an awful racket.***************************************************** ***********************You may be fooled by the hip glasses and professorial air, but make no mistake: CLAYTON BROWN is a science geek at heart. WABOLABR is fortunate that, in between his visits with superconductors and his lively conversations with outer space, he still likes to pick up a guitar and keep this band in line.

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 24/01/2007
Band Members: Jordan Wankoff (banjo, fiddle, guitar, mandolin, vocals) Angela Bowman (vocals, mandolin) Elizabeth Lamberti (fiddle, vocals) Clayton Brown (guitar, bass, vocals)
Influences: Carter Family, Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard, Tommy Jarrell, New Lost City Ramblers, Ginny Hawker, Bob Wills, Foghorn Stringband
Sounds Like: heaven on earth
Record Label: Unsigned

My Blog

WABOLABR joins OTS Tribute to Carter Family and Bill Monroe

Our patron saints! OTS tribute concerts are always hugely entertaining, so we are pleased and honored to play at this Tribute to Carter Family and Bill Monroe. We'll be in good company: With Chris Wal...
Posted by on Sun, 12 Jul 2009 20:31:00 GMT

WABOLABR to open for Possum Hollow Boys at Horseshoe

With the snowbells and crocuses we are beginning to peek up out of the frozen ground and, like the birds, we will soon be chirping, twittering, and screeching away.It's true! It's been a long, cold wi...
Posted by on Thu, 19 Mar 2009 12:36:00 GMT

Now that We’re Warmed Up

August is shaping up to be quite a month. We had a great time Friday at Cary's Lounge. Sunday we started recording album 2! We dusted off the old eight-track recorder, hung a bunch of blankets in Jord...
Posted by on Mon, 18 Aug 2008 19:56:00 GMT

WABOLABR and Cory Atkinson Band at Cary’s Lounge

In our typically spontaneous and freewheeling fashion we have agreed to play a gig tonight, August 15 at Cary's Lounge in West Rogers Park. We will be opening for the Cory Atkinson Band, who will be f...
Posted by on Fri, 15 Aug 2008 08:35:00 GMT

WABOLABR at Montrose Saloon 5/17

Hello, WABOlubbers!Like the magnolia blossoms, the big wheels, and the Mexican polkas at my neighbors' house, we are back after a very long winter. We'd love you to join us on May 17 in an old-timey c...
Posted by on Sat, 03 May 2008 23:22:00 GMT

PRESS

"Pure mountain music of the 20s and 30s, reassembled to museum-grade specs with all its joyousness intact." Monica Kendrick, the Chicago Reader
Posted by on Wed, 05 Mar 2008 11:37:00 GMT

What is a WABOLABR? Contest Results

Readers, I'm so sorry. I never told you the results of our "What is a WABOLABR?" contest. It's truly old news by now, but let's at least record it for the archives. The winning entry was "a convivial ...
Posted by on Tue, 01 Jan 2008 17:29:00 GMT

Back in Action

Our fans have been very patient while our fiddle player, Elizabeth, was in Africa (mozamberti.blogspot.com). She is home again! And I am glad to report that our first practice together was as if no ti...
Posted by on Tue, 01 Jan 2008 17:16:00 GMT

Greetings from the Yukon

We have been very warmly received up here in the Yukon. Actually the folks in the town of Jumper were so gracious as to invite us to play at the 85th anniversary of their town hall. Now that was a goo...
Posted by on Sat, 07 Jul 2007 09:55:00 GMT

Special Free Contest: What is a WABOLABR?

Our friends are polite enough not to ask, but we know it's just a matter of time before the fan magazines are all over us, and those people don't rest until they get a good explanation. This is your b...
Posted by on Wed, 27 Jun 2007 00:42:00 GMT